rallyp

Jennifer of Never Say Never Greyhounds fame describes a great way for teaching recall. The cool thing is you start this training while still on-leash. Here's a link to her approach: http://www.neversaynevergreyhounds.net/come.html

Wow, I just tried this out and it really works well. Thanks for the suggestion. Another solution I've used in the past (if you don't have the luxury of a couple of iOS devices) is Ustream. It's a web service and it enables you to watch from anywhere.

Seriously! Now all I can imagine is every person I've seen walking a greyhound carrying knives, tasers, guns, and medieval torture devices... all concealed in their fanny packs and disguised by scented poopbag adornments. I don't think I'll ever look at people at a greyhound gathering the same again. I'm surprised there hasn't been an apocalypse at the Dewey Reach the Beach event

Yes, totally fine. Lots of people use them to supplement meals. The neck bones and ligaments and all that are a little softer than other bones, so they're great for cleaning their teeth. Definitely, do NOT cook them.

So amazingly sad. And amazingly awesome. From such a tragic situation I don't think it could have ended any better.

Oh, this is very normal behavior. As laid back as your dog is, it sounds like the raw beef bone is one of those things that he *REALLY* likes, so when you're coming close to him, he's basically saying, don't even think about taking this away from me. That being said, you can work towards being able to take something like that from him. If you search the forum on trading up, that's basically the technique you'll want to use. In a nutshell, give him something he likes (but not something he likes so much you don't think he'll give it up), then give him a cue, like "Give!", and then give him something he'll want more. Initially, what he'll do is drop the thing he has so he can get the better thing. Over time, you're teaching him that every time you ask him to give, you're going give him something better so he'll willingly give up what he has. As he gets better at it, you can keep increasing the 'value' of the thing you're trying to take. It's a pretty valuable skill for when he might pick up something he really shouldn't have and you need to get it away from him (like maybe a dead animal or something). Personally, there are certain things that are SO high value, that I'll only give it to my dog if I have no intention of taking it back (like a raw meat bone).

Some dogs really really love food, it's as simple as that. He's learned that the kitchen is where the food lives, so now he's motivated to get in there. Really, the best thing you can do is to teach him that he doesn't get rewarded by going into the kitchen. Essentially, this means that you can't have food out. He has to learn that now, when he goes into the kitchen, he doesn't actually get rewarded with finding food. I have one of those dogs. Believe me, she can get into anything. You mentioned having a vittle vault... , Lima Bean opens them. Her vittle vault used to 'live' in the bathroom, because it was the only room in my old apartment that had a door I could close (luckily, I now have a garage). What I have to do is to ALWAYS PUT ANYTHING EDIBLE (or seemingly edible) AWAY. At one time, this included nothing below the top of the refrigerator and if it was, it had to be behind a closed door with a baby lock. The good thing is that over time, Lima Bean tends to not go scrounging through the kitchen as much because I'm generally good about not leaving stuff out. I actually don't bother baby locking my higher cabinet doors 'cause she doesn't bother trying to get into them anymore. But I think you'll have to accept, to a certain extent, that leaving food out is just way too tempting for normal food-loving dogs.

I think for the alone training to be really effective, you need to completely leave the house. If he knows you're around, then of course he's going to want to be near you . I'm not sure that in the big picture, it's a problem for him to want to be with you when you're home. You just want him comfortable with you leaving altogether. I think the velcro stuff tends to abate over time. If you're really concerned about him being velcro while you're there, I'd just ignore him. Let him be with you, but don't always give him attention. A lot of this will work out over time as he gets used to things. Remember, a month (and even a year) is just a blink of an eye in the big picture. Try not to worry too much about how you're doing here, it's clear that you've thought a ton about how to get Doug integrated into your life, so it's pretty much a guarantee he's going to do great.

Chad's advice above is excellent. It really sounds like your boyfriend just went over a line (in Doug's mind) in that specific situation. You have to remember, kissing a dog on its head (even though it's a sign of great affection for us humans) is an extremely aggressive move to a dog who is not used to that sort of thing. As a general rule, it's not a good idea to be touching a dog while he's on his bed, particularly when he's really new (and a month is definitely new). It does sound like Doug is actually ok, to a certain extent, with being touched while on his bed. His pawing at you to continue petting him shows that. But in this case he started to get overwhelmed when you both started petting him at the same time and he started giving signs of this when he started panting. Leaning over him and kissing him on the head just became too much for him. I guess it depends on how conservative you want to be, but I think you can still pet him on his bed, but you need to be really vigilante with paying attention to how he's taking it. Be careful to not lean over the top of him and definitely do not kiss him. Do all the things others have described with earning his trust, doing training, NILIF and over time, you'll see him getting more and more comfortable with you being in his space. Oh, and lastly, I don't think this has much at all to do with Doug not respecting your boyfriend. Like I said above, it was a direct response to the specific situation at hand. I DO think it's a great idea, however, to have your boyfriend build a bond with Doug though walks, training, interacting, etc.

When I fostered, I always crated the new foster dog and my dog was always out and about. It was never an issue.

I don't think Nala is exhibiting anything that's particularly extraordinary here. It might help if you look at some of her behaviors in a slightly different light. The first thing you want to make sure to understand, growling in and of itself is NOT bad. This is Nala's only mechanism to express that she's uncomfortable with what's going on in the moment. Remember, the alternative is that she'll just bite. Growling is how well-adjusted dogs tell someone, I'm not comfortable with what you're doing. If you constantly correct her for growling, she'll learn not to growl... but then be much more likely to jump directly to a bite, which is obviously not good. Now, what IS important is that you don't want Nala to be growling in situations where she has no real reason to feel uncomfortable. This seems to me to be very related to Nala being so new. Food is something that's usually very valuable to a dog, so she's probably feeling a little threatened that Bella is so close. In the short term, simply feed them in different locations or at different times. Over the long term, I'm sure you'll be able to get her to the point where she doesn't feel like that during feeding. Hopefully others will chime in with some specific things you can do to get her moving in that direction. This is definitely a tougher aspect. Sleep startle is something that varies in dogs, and in some, it can be pretty bad. For many, you can try and desensitize them over time, but you'll need to be very deliberate about it and it can take a lot of time and effort. Some may not ever get over it. I think there's a few people on GT who've gone through this and be able to provide advice here. The bottom line though is that you need to respect this particular trait and leave her alone when she's sleeping. Create off-limit zones (e.g., her bed, her crate) where when she's sleeping, she's never touched. And keep following the advice you've received already about it. Dogs often do this when they play, they'll mouth each other's neck. Now with greys (and I'm guessing with Iggys too), that might not be so ideal because their skin is so thin. But I wouldn't look at it as something where Nala was trying to eat her or hurt her. Of course, keep an eye on that to make sure she doesn't play too rough. Nala needs to realize that that *hurts* you and that it's inappropriate. You shouldn't ignore it. I'd immediately yell out, "OUCH!", and then stop playing with her right at that moment so that she learns that nipping is not appropriate. You can resume playing after a minute or so, and if she does the same thing, you do the same thing until she starts figuring it out (or until you have no arm left from all the biting ) It's definitely much too soon to tell anything, and like I said earlier, I haven't seen anything here that Nala is doing anything extremely bad. I'd recommend keeping your two separated or muzzled while Nala is still learning the ropes and her new surroundings. Tons of people here have a lot of experience with bringing new dogs home to their existing ones so they'll chime in I'm sure. The sleep aggression thing is a tougher issue that would require a more proactive approach to deal with compared to dogs that don't have it, but I think it's a very easily manageable thing as long you think about it, and it's clear that you're very thoughtful about the whole situation. It's a good idea to avoid the head kisses early on too. Dogs typically don't realize this is a sign of affection, in dog-dog language, that would be considered an aggressive move. You might consider reading up on books that describe dog body language. On Talking Terms with Dogs: Calming Signals, by Turid Ruugas, is a short but really good book that talks about that. Very informative. Good luck with everything. Trust me. One week is even less than a blink of an eye in the adjustment period for these guys into their new homes. I think you'll a lot of the issues resolving themselves just by allowing for more time.

To this question, very likely, yes. You've already seen evidence of this. Dogs do best when they know what to expect and know what they're supposed to do. They get this from routine, structure, and consistent expectations. If you're willing and able to provide this type of structure and routine, your dog will get more confident and comfortable as time goes on. It's interesting, whenever there's a dog, particularly a new dog who's being put into a brand new environment, that exhibits behavioral issues, we try all kinds of things to try to get that dog back on track. I think the thing we forget is that one of the biggest factors in most dogs improving is the simple passing of time. It's during the passing of time that the dog is figuring things out, feeling safer, more confident, as it finally has a chance to understand who things work in its new world. Oh, and no. The fact that you're regularly gone 8 hrs a day is a non-issue. If anything, it becomes part of the dog's routine. If these dogs couldn't thrive and feel loved in a home where they have to be left alone for 8-10 hr increments, then no single person who works full time, or any couple who works full time, should ever own a dog. And anyone who implies that is spewing a big fat steaming pile of crap.

Nice to see you Giselle. Your posts are greatly missed. AGREED!!

Oh, Ave .... I'll always remember you as one of the classic Boston dogs.

Oh, that sucks so much. I echo the advice that others have said about really trying to reach out to your neighbors. It's going to take a little time to do proper alone training and for your new guy to settle in. You know, it's really easy for people to be very cold and unfeeling to a nameless entity (e.g., a neighbor they've never talked to and a vocal dog they've never seen). It's a LOT harder to be that way if you actually have interacted with that person and that dog. It also really helps to know that you're actively working on it, it's not something you're just letting happen at the expense of everyone around you. Play up the concept of how you've taken this dog from the only life he's known and that it's just an adjustment period and that they all do settle in. Maybe even get them invested in his progress - ask them to be your ears and to contact you right away when they do hear him whining. Cookies are always tough to turn down too . Best of luck. I can imagine how stressful this all is now.

You need to trust the process outlined in the Patricia McConnell book first. I've had a couple of foster dogs who exhibited pretty loud separation anxiety behavior and the best, most long lasting, solution is proper alone training. Keep in mind, it doesn't always just instantly work. It can take a little time (and a lot of patience). Another thing to remember, as you go through this, it can seem like no progress is being made (when in fact, it is). I wouldn't consider medications unless your dog starting hurting itself or damaging things.

It's definitely a good idea to go down there and meet your neighbor and explain to him that you're actively working on the whining. Definitely let him know that this is not an extremely uncommon thing with newly retired greyhounds and that it's also very fixable and just takes a little time. People are generally a lot more patient when they know that something is actively being worked on rather than thinking that you're doing nothing about it. Even better if he meets Ross. Another thing you could do is encourage your neighbor to let you know if Ross is whining. In a way, it involves your neighbor in the process which sort of gets him invested in Ross's success and would make it less likely he'd could get frustrated at you and makes a complaint. It does sound like Ross is just exhibiting some mild separation anxiety, it's certainly a normal thing given he's new. he just hasn't learned to feel good about being by himself. Your being home all the time can definitely exacerbate it. Really, the best thing you can do is go through very deliberate 'alone training' with him. Susan's recommendation of the 'I'll Be Home Soon' book is a good one.

You sort of touched on what you need to do to help him get over his car sickness... his nervousness in the car is definitely going to play a large component in getting carsick so you need to help him overcome that. Right now, he's going to start associating the car with getting sick, so every time he gets in there he'll get stressed which makes him more likely to get sick which makes him think every time he gets in there he'll get sick which..., well, you get the idea. You have to get him to start associating getting in the car with very positive things. Start out slow, maybe just drive him for a block, but make sure that drive ends somewhere he really likes (like a park or the pet store or whatever). Slowly extend the distance, just make sure every ride ends up in a very positive experience. And you want to try to end these first few trips before he gets sick. As you're doing this, you can also try stuff like Gravol or Dramamine to help. Others have had luck with things like ginger cookies too. Oh, and do this when he's on an empty stomach. I've had a coulple of fosters in the past who would get car sick and this process definitey worked for them. It just took a little time.

Keep in mind, you don't *need* a trainer to do effective training, so I wouldn't use that as a reason to wait to start. It's really easy, you just need to be purposeful about it. If you have the Retired Racing Greyhounds for Dummies book (by Lee Livingood), it has a short, but excellent, section on how to do clicker training. Drop dead simple and easy. One of the most valuable things about the training is that it's a mean to develop a relationship with your dog. It gives your dog a means to communicate and interact with you and that goes a LONG way to building trust.

Wow. I still can't believe this. When I was in Boston, it seemed like every single greyhound related thing had been in some way impacted by Linda. She did so much for these dogs. RIP.

Oh Pam, that is TERRIBLE! I'm glad to hear that Avril seems to be recovering ok. Hope it continues to go smoothly.

You should still read that growling thread. It's valuable because it will likely give you a different perspective on how to approach growling in general (why it happens and why it's not necessarily a *bad* thing when a dog growls).

This is awful. I feel so sad for you guys .